House signs have been used since ancient times to personalise a dwelling, turning a

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

into a

home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

Types

Stone

Stone signs are hard to beat for their durability. The most commonly used rock includes

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

, and

slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

. Marble and Granite can look quite elegant, but do not have much scope for artwork beyond simple line drawings. Any sculptural shaping in these signs is typically very expensive. Slate has its own distinctive appearance which is also popular despite being again not suitable for carving. If gilding is desired, these signs should be hand carved for maximum visual impact.

Sand-blasting Sandblasting, sometimes known as abrasive blasting, is the operation of forcibly propelling a stream of abrasive material against a surface under high pressure to smooth a rough surface, roughen a smooth surface, shape a surface or remove su ...

, though less expensive, creates a rounded groove, with inferior reflective quality.

Cast Metal (traditional)

These signs are usually made of

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...

in a smelting process where molten metal is poured into a mold and then allowed to cool. The unique and prestigious look can be quite appealing but signs produced this way do come with some disadvantages: they are costly to produce; quite heavy and the manufacturing process contributes to pollution and the emission of

volatile organic compound Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have a high vapour pressure at room temperature. High vapor pressure correlates with a low boiling point, which relates to the number of the sample's molecules in the surrounding air, a ...

s (VOCs). Brass tends to tarnish and corrode after a few years, as does iron. Also, artwork on these signs is generally restricted to a motif chosen from a gallery or a template to avoid expensive mold costs. Nonetheless, these signs do remain popular due to their traditional appearance.

Ceramic

Ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

signs give a very traditional feel, though there is little scope for carving or sculpting, hence they can look a little flat. These signs tend to last very well once mounted. Care must be taken not to crack the sign in the mounting process, or by dropping it prior to installation. Ceramic signs tend to be expensive, due to the complexity of the manufacturing process.

Acrylic

Plates, similar to those made of stainless steel or brass, can be used where a more modern look is desired. Acrylic signs are best suited for indoor/outdoor or business applications, but can also be used for house signs. Light and inexpensive.

Carved

Traditionally made of

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

, carved signs allow for the most creativity in terms of painting, shape, and sculpture. Western red cedar and redwood ( Sequoia sempervirens) is most common, although

cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The nam ...

and

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

are also used along with a range of darker tropical woods. Wood requires regular maintenance and repeated coats of varnish or paint. More recently developed synthetic materials, notably high-density

urethane Urethane may refer to: * Ethyl carbamate, a chemical compound which is an ester of carbamic acid * Polyurethane, a polymer composed of a chain of organic units joined by carbamate (urethane) links *Carbamate In organic chemistry, a carbamate is ...

(HDU), have been extremely successful, allowing the same quality and craftsmanship coupled with a much greater weather resistance.Spielman, P.: "Making Wood Signs", Barnes & Noble, Oct 2003 Carved signs have been a traditional icon of the New England states in the USA, and are frequently also gilded with real gold. Traditional hand carving techniques are still used to create carved signs, although CNC routers are sometimes employed, and some sites exist which allow users t
design their own sign
prior to having it hand carved.

References

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